Building a Connected Entrepreneurial Ecosystem
Over the past five years, the Cabarrus Center has strengthened the region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem by supporting startups, retail businesses, and innovators at every stage of growth. Through programs like Retail Lab and Venture Mentor Services (VMS), the Center has helped businesses accelerate their growth, populate storefronts across Cabarrus County, and support both brick-and-mortar and e-commerce entrepreneurs with local and national impact.
Those programs have become foundational to the Center’s mission, creating a connected network where entrepreneurs can access mentorship, education, collaboration, and resources all in one place.
Barbi Jones of the Cabarrus Chamber said the Center has become an essential hub for business support across the county. “The Cabarrus Center has been a much-needed space to bring together many partners that support businesses of all sizes in Cabarrus County,” Jones said. “By co-locating, we’re able to ensure that each business’s journey has the appropriate partners to provide guidance and resources. The Flywheel Foundation has filled a vital need to help shepherd startup businesses and provide the tools and resources needed to grow and scale.”
Accelerating Local Business Success
One example of that impact is Kim and Kinzer Messenger, owners of The Task Tacklers and Handyman Home Solutions. After joining the VMS Ventures program in March 2025, the couple saw their business grow by 171% after Kim joined full time. Originally from Canada and New Mexico, they say the mentorship, networking, and community connections they gained through the program dramatically accelerated their success.
Through VMS, they were paired with mentors Andrew Castrodale, Katrina Carney, and Rick Francart, who provided expertise in areas such as marketing, technology, and artificial intelligence. The program also connected them with vendors, clients, and local professionals they otherwise would not have met. “We definitely wouldn’t be where we are now without the program,” they shared. “It shortened the gap because we had access to expert advice and a strong support system.”
Kim is also a Flywheel member and business coach, and she hosted a retreat for her clients from around the world at the Cabarrus Center. She said her guests were amazed by the quality of the resources, programming, and collaborative environment. “There’s nothing like this anywhere else, even in other countries,” she said. For Kim, joining a coworking space created opportunities and relationships she would not have found working from home. “I was never going to meet anyone if I worked from home,” she said. “Joining a coworking space that also had resources changed everything.”
“What I love about the Cabarrus Center is how it alleviates the isolation that so often holds entrepreneurs back — you’re surrounded by people who want to see you win,” said Andrew Castrodale, VMS Mentor. “As a mentor, I’ve had the privilege of walking alongside founders who came in with raw potential and left with the clarity, confidence, and community to build something meaningful.”
Driving Innovation Beyond the Local Market
The Center’s influence extends beyond individual companies through initiatives like the Health Equity Innovation Challenge partnership with Atrium Health’s North Market area. That collaboration focuses on improving health equity and access to quality healthcare outcomes for underserved populations while helping participating companies build their own interconnected commerce ecosystem. Businesses that move through the program often begin collaborating with one another, creating partnerships and solutions that strengthen the broader regional economy.
Strengthening Partnerships Across the Community
The collaborative environment at the Cabarrus Center has also transformed how local organizations serve entrepreneurs. “Relocating the Rowan-Cabarrus Small Business Center into the Cabarrus Center significantly increased both our visibility and our impact,” said Meg Johnson, Director of the Small Business Center at Rowan-Cabarrus Community College.
“We got out of the office and stepped into the small business community. Even more importantly, it’s changed how our clients connect and engage with resources. They’re now part of a connected ecosystem where support is coordinated, accessible, and collaborative. We’re moving forward together.”
Celebrating Five Years of Innovation and Growth
As the Cabarrus Center recently celebrated its five-year anniversary, the milestone served as a reminder of the impact the organization has made on entrepreneurs and small businesses across the region.
The recent anniversary celebration brought together entrepreneurs, mentors, partners, and community leaders for an evening of connection and reflection in the Flywheel Coworking Social Commons. Guests celebrated the businesses launched, partnerships formed, and ideas brought to life within the Center’s walls — highlighting the collaborative spirit that continues to make the Cabarrus Center a place where businesses thrive.
